A prayer for the land once known as holy

God of justice and compassion

Hear the cries of your wounded people
Hear the cries of those imprisoned
in a land once called ‘holy’
May we be part of the community
that raises our voices
and challenges our governments
to speak up for those who get ignored.
We pray for justice to come
because peace cannot come
without justice
And yet when there is justice we know
that both Palestinians and Israelis
will find freedom and hope
In the sadness of a deeply wounded Middle East
we pray that the plight of the victims of injustice
will not be forgotten any longer
by the governments of the world
nor by the church leaders of the world
May we hear the call of this kairos moment
to walk with the values of Jesus
and to campaign and pray
that peace with justice
will become a reality –
so both Palestinians and Israelis will find peace,
so both may move forward to a new day where all are respected,
and where both communities find hope.
And when we travel there as pilgrims
may we be renewed by our encounter with the ‘Fifth Gospel’
that opens our eyes to the values of your kingdom
and the way of healing and hope.